To do

TimHi, I'm Tim and this is my pronunciation workshop. Here, I'm gonna show you how English is really spoken. It'll help you become a better listener and a more fluent speaker. Come on, let's go inside. Now, when we speak English fluently, the sounds in words can join together, change or even disappear entirely. Sometimes more than one of these can happen. Take this for example. Now, I'm sure you know what it is, but let's ask the people of London:

VoxpopsAn egg sandwichIt's a sandwichIt's a sandwichIt's an egg sandwich

TimNow, the word 'sandwich' has an /n/ followed by a /d/, doesn't it? Or does it? Listen again, what sound can you hear?

VoxpopsAn egg sandwichIt's a sandwichIt's a sandwichIt's an egg sandwich

TimInstead of 'sandwich', we hear 'samwich'. That's pretty crazy, right! So, what is going on? Well, first the /d/ disappears in between two consonants. You might remember this from our video on elision. So 'sandwich' becomes 'sanwich'. Now, we have an /n/ followed by a /w/ and /n/ changes to /m/ before /w/. You might remember this from our video on assimilation. So sandwich becomes samwich. Have another look – this time in slow motion. Watch the shape of the mouth. Can you see /nd/, or /m/?

VoxpopsSandwichSandwichSandwichSandwich

TimPretty cool, huh? Here are some more examples:

ExamplesMy grandparents have been married for 50 years.I got a standby ticket.The band played until midnight.I left my handbag on the train.

TimOk, so you've heard the examples, and now it's your turn. Are you ready? Listen and repeat.

ExamplesMy grandparents have been married for 50 years.I got a standby ticket.The band played until midnight.I left my handbag on the train.

TimWell done. Remember if you want to see more on pronunciation please visit our website: bbclearningenglish.com. That's about it from the pronunciation workshop for now. I'll see you soon. Bye. Now, where did I put that sandwich? It was handmade, just for me. Argh!

Assimilation when words end in /nd/When a word or syllable ending in the /nd/ sound is followed by a word or syllable beginning in a consonant sound such as /p/, /b/, /m/ or /w/, sometimes, the /nd/ and the consonant sound come together and change to /m/. Some examples of phrases where this might happen include:

My grandmother is 90

I got a standby ticket

The band played until midnight

To do

Got that? Now try this activity to get some more practice.

You need to enable JavaScript to use this activity.

The /nd/ game

6 Questions

How many examples of assimilation of /nd/ followed by /b/, /p/, /w/ or /m/ are there in each sentence? You decide...

Help

Close

Activity

How many examples of assimilation of /nd/ followed by /b/, /p/, /w/ or /m/ are there in each sentence? You decide...

Hint

When a word ends in an /nd/ sound and the next word begins with a /b/, /p/, /w/ or /m/, the /nd/ at the end will change to an /m/ as your mouth gets ready to say the next sound.

Session Grammar

Session Vocabulary

Assimilation when words end in -ndWhen a word or syllable ending in -nd is followed by a word or syllable beginning in a consonant sound, sometimes, the -nd and the consonant sound come together and change to /m/. Some examples of phrases where this might happen include:

My grandmother is 90I got a standby ticketThe band played until midnight